Quick-change ribbon mechanism



Nov. 6, 1962 Filed Jan. 4, 1960 r F. H. CANNY QUICK-CHANGE RIBBON MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet-l 3 FLOYD H.CANNY INVENTOR ATTORNEY Nov. 6, 1962 F. H. CANNY QUICK-CHANGE RIBBON MECHANISM 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 4, .1960

FLOYD H. CANNY INVENTOR ATTORNEY F. H. CANNY QUICK-CHANGE RIBBON MECHANISM Nov. 6, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 4. 1960 FLOYD H. cmmv INVENTOR ATTORNEY United States Patent M 3,062,351 QUICK-CHANGE RIBBON MECHANISM Floyd H. Canny, Syracuse, N.Y., assignor to Smith- Corona Marchant Inc., Syracuse, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Jan. 4, 1960, Ser. No. 339 9 Claims. (Cl. 197-160) This invention relates to typewriters and more particularly to improved ribbon supporting and ribbon reversing means, whereby installation and changing of the ribbon is facilitated.

The object of the present invention is to provide, in a typewriter or like machine, an improved ribbon support and feeding device, whereby the typist can quickly install a ribbon without having to touch the ribbon.

A specific object of the invention is to provide, in a typewriting machine, improved ribbon support, guide and feed means so constructed and arranged that the ribbon, on its spools, may be quickly and easily removed by the operator by merely lifting the spools from the machine, and a new ribbon may be quickly installed merely by dropping the spools into operative position, all without touching the ribbon.

A further object is to provide means automatically operated by the opening of the ribbon cover of the machine for removing and restraining the ribbon-feed reversing means from engagement with the ribbon spools, whereby the ribbon spools may be inserted or removed without interference by said ribbon-reversing means.

Still further objects are to provide improved ribbon guide means on the ribbon carrier and adjacent the ribbon spools whereby a new ribbon may be easily and simply dropped into place when the ribbon cover is open and whereby the ribbon is guided in a path from one spool to another past the printing point during normal operation of the machine with the cover closed.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the appended drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of the ribbon-supporting portions of a typewriting machine showing the invention, portions of the ribbon cover being broken away and the open position of said cover being indicated in broken lines;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the parts shown at the right in FIGURE 1, certain parts being broken away; and

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmentary and exploded perspective view of the parts shown at the left in FIG- URE 1, other parts being broken away for clarity of illustration.

In the preferred embodiment shown in the drawings, the machine has numerous known parts which will first be described.

Not shown in the drawings, it will be understood, is a platen, or other paper-carrying part on a carriage for transverse stepwise movement across the machine. Type bars, or other movable typing elements, are mounted in the machine for movement to a printing point P for printting a letter or other character, and such movement is selectively controlled by type keys or other selective mechanism. The inking ribbon It) is interposed between the type-bearing elements and the platen.

The parts of the typewriting machine shown in the drawings are arranged substantially as in the known Smith-Corona ofiice typewriter. The machine is provided with a casing which includes a ribbon spool cover 11 hinged at 12 so as to provide access to the ribbon-carrying parts now to be described.

Type guide 13 is secured just forward of the printing Patented Nov. 6, 1962 point P, as by screws 15, to the type bar segment or other printing element support member. The ribbon carrier 16 is slidably mounted on the middle portion of guide 13 by means of tongues 17 which is bent around the sides 14, of the guide to support the carrier. Conventional ribbon carrier vibrator means, not shown, move carrier 16 upward and downward on the guide alternately to cover and uncover the printing point P incident to each printing stroke of the machine.

The inking ribbon 10 is attached in the usual manner at its opposite ends to ribbon spools 21, which as best seen in FIGURE 2, are supported on spool shafts 22 located at either side of the machine and extending vertically through bearing members 23. Lugs 24 on shafts 22 engage cooperating slots 25 in the spools so that the spools may be turned by rotating the shafts. Brackets 26 are secured to the main frame of the machine and support the bearing members 23, to which cup-shaped spool pocket members 27 are affixed.

Spools 21 have an inner core 28 joining the spool rims on which the ribbon is attached and wound. Sensing means are provided whereby the exhaustion of the ribbon from one of the spools may be detected. These sensing means comprise a gap or aperture 29 in the spool core through which the lateral head 30 of a vertically extending arm 31 of ribbon-feed reversing lever 32 may protrude when the ribbon has been completely unwound from the spool. Arm 31 extends upward through an appropriate aperture 27a in the spool pocket member 27. Reversing lever 32 is pivoted by means of screws 33 on the bracket 26 so as to be rockable on a foreand aftextending axis. Spring 34 biases the reversing lever toward its ribbon-feed reversing position shown in FIG- URE 2, so that during operation of the machine the head 30 engages the spool core 28 at the ribbon is unwound from the spool.

Reversing lever 32 is provided with a downwardlyextending arm 35 terminating in a hooked portion for engagement with a ratchet wheel 36 when the head 30 protrudes through the aperture 29 to raise drive shaft 37 in a manner to be described.

The ratchet wheel 36 is secured to shaft 37 which is driven (by means not shown) in a stepwise manner in counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in FIGURE 2, through a predetermined angle for each printing stroke of the machine. Also not shown but located rearward of the ratchet wheel 36, on the shaft 37, is the conventional universal joint and bevel gear arranged so that the shaft may be tilted about its forward end to carry the bevel gear into engagement with bevel gear 38 secured on the bottom end of the ribbon spool shaft 22. The forward end of each shaft 37 is secured by a ball and socket connection to the outer end of double lever 39 and, when shaft 37 is tilted to its raised position by reason of the engagement of ratchet wheel 36 with hooked arm 35, the bevel gears are enmeshed and the shaft 22 is driven in the direction of the arrow in FIGURE 2.

A similar, but reversed, arrangement of parts is provided at the left of the machine to rotate the spool shaft 22 in the reverse direction as indicated by the arrow in FIG- URE 3.

Double lever 39 is pivoted at 39a on the bracket 26. A pendant arm 3% from one of the levers 39 forms a bellcrank therewith and, at its lower end, pivotally mounts transverse link 40 connecting arms 39b on the other side of the machine, so that, when the bevel gears on one side of the machine are in mesh, the bevel gears on the other side are spaced apart and, when the spaced gears are moved into mesh, the gears at the opposite side are moved apart. A second pendant arm 390 is provided on lever 39 and limits on projection 26a of bracket 26 to form a stop for movement of the bellcrank lever 39 in the clockwise direction.

The link 40 is also provided with a conventional snap aotion detent arrangement, not shown, for shifting from one set of ribbon drive bevel gears to the other and for holding the gears in engagement. The ribbon feeding and reversing mechanisms are more fully described in United States Patent 929,935 to Gabrielson and in United States Patent 2,3 87,785 to Walker.

I shall now proceed to describe the quick-change features of the present invention, comprising improved ribbon guide portions on the ribbon carrier 16, improved guide means for guiding the ribbon in its path to and from the carrier, and a device for controlling the sensing means, which all cooperate to allow the ribbon to be installed quickly and easily without the typist touching the ribbon.

Referring particularly to FIGURE 3, the carrier 16 is a unitary U-shaped plate slidable up and down on guide 14, and is provided at its upper portion with wing-like projections on either side of the printing point P which are slightly curved so as to provide a generally convex surface adjacent the platen not shown. Each wing 45 is provided with a long tongue 46 projecting from the wing and bent sharply rearward and thence upwardly and slightly divergently from the Wing 45. Each tongue 46 and wing 45 thus define a V-shaped opening or guide slot at either side of the printing point for receiving the ribbon 10. A second tongue 47, 'located at the top of each wing 45, extends laterally rearward, partially closing the guide slot, and forms a substantially horizontal ribbon-constraining member to limit upward movement of the ribbon with respect to the carrier. In operation, the ribbon is held against wings 45 beneath tongues 47 by the tension on the ribbon imparted by the ribbon feed.

Additional ribbon guides are provided adjacent each spool pocket 27 comprising members 48 welded, or otherwise secured to, or integral with, the ribbon spool cover 11 and projecting downward therefrom. The members 48 are each provided with a slotted opening 49 through which the ribbon is guided when the cover is in closed position, the portion of the member 48 at the top of the slot acting to constrain the ribbon from upward movement adjacent the spools.

The device for controlling the sensing means comprises lever 50, which is adapted to automatically swing reversing lever 32 out of engagement with the spool 21 when the operator moves the ribbon spool cover 11 to its open position.

In FIGURES 2 and 3, reversing lever 32 is shown provided with an outwardly projecting arm 51 on the opposite side of pivot 33 from arm 31. Located immediately above the arm 51 and engageable thereby is extension 53 of lever 50. Lever is pivotally mounted on bracket 26 by means of shouldered screw 52 and is provided at its inner end with extension 53 and at its outer end with a projecting arm 54 engageable by an ear 57, shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, on the ribbon spool cover 11. Also outwardly of the pivot 52 on the lever 50 is a rearwardly bent tongue 55. Spring 56 is connected to the tongue and to bracket 26 so as to constantly urge the extension 53 downward toward the arms 51 of the reversing lever.

Rib-bon spool cover 11 is provided at either side with an ear 57 which, when the cover is moved to the closed position, travels along the path A, shown in FIGURE 1, and engages the arm 54, moving the restraining lever 50 from the position shown in FIGURE 3 to that shown in FIGURE 2. A latch, not shown, may be provided for maintaining the cover 11 in closed position and a stop 58 (FIGURE 2) may be provided on bracket 26 for limiting the downward movement of the extension 53.

The operation of the quick-change ribbon parts will now be apparent. When the ribbon 10 is wound on the spool at the left of the machine and the spool at the right of the machine becomes exhausted, as shown in FIGURE 2, the transversely projecting head 30 of the reversing lever 32 is moved through the aperture 29 in the spool core 28 by spring 34, thereby allowing reversing lever 32 to rock counter-clockwise about pivot 33, carrying hooked arm 35 into ratchet wheel 36 to reverse the direction of feed of the ribbon.

Should it be desired to change the ribbon, the cover 11 is swung upward and both spools 21 are removed by lifting them from the pockets 27. The head 30 of the reversing lever is provided with camming surfaces, as shown, to aid in the removal and installation of the spool on its shaft 22 but these operations heretofore have been attended with some difficulty. The sensing means controlling mechanism of the present invention, however, automatically swings the reversing levers 32 entirely out of engagement with both spools immediately upon the opening of the cover 11. Arm 54 of each restraining lever 50 is released by car 57 of the cover, allowing spring 56 to pivot the lever 56, moving extension 53 downward. Spring 56 is of sufiicient size to move the lever 32 against the force of spring 34. Extension 53, through engagement with arm 51, rocks reversing lever 32 about screw 33 swinging arm 31 inwardly toward shaft 22, regardless of whether or not the head 30 might protrude through the aperture 29. Arm 31 is therefore withdrawn away from core 28 of spool 21 and both spools may be removed and thereafter replaced by simply dropping the spool on its shaft 22 quickly and easily without any turning or transverse motion of the spool to push the head 30 aside.

When the cover 11 is moved to its closed position, the ear 57 on either side engages arm 54 of the disabling lever 50, moving it downward, thereby removing the extension 53 from atop arm 51 and allowing spring 34 to move head 30 on arm 31 of lever 32 to its normal operative position against the core 28 of the spool or through the aperture 29 should the spool be exhausted.

The portion of the ribbon between the spools is easily removed from the V-shaped guide slots in the ribbon carrier once tension on the ribbon is released, by lifting the ribbon past the tongues 47. A new ribbon is then installed. The outer end of the new ribbon is engaged in the usual manner with the hook provided for that purpose on the core 28 of the empty spool, or the new ribbon may be already provided with and secured to an empty spool.

Holding the two spools spaced slightly apart, the ribbon between the spools is simply dropped between the tongues 46 and 47 into the V-shaped guide slots of the ribbon carrier. Since the slot between the wing 45 and finger 46 is partially open at the top there is no necessity for touching the ribbon to manipulate it into or through awkwardly-placed entrance slots. The ribbon may be dropped downward directly into the guide slot through the opening and the spools are then easily placed on their shafts 22 and the cover is again closed. As soon as the ribbon feed begins to operate, the tension exerted on the ribbon holds it against the wings 45 and the tongues 47 prevent undesired upward movement of the ribbon with respect to the carrier.

When the ribbon spool cover 11 is closed, the guide slots 49 in the cover-borne members 48 are placed automatically across the path of the ribbon from the carrier 16 to the spools 21, and the tensioning of the ribbon moves the ribbons into the slots 49 without necessity for manipulation of the ribbon by the typist, and, durin operation of the machine, upward motion of the ribbon is limited by the close top portion of the slots 49.

While the arrangement of the ribbon controlling and guiding parts of the present invention has herein been described in the setting of a typing machine having a movable platen traveling past a fixed printing point, it will be apparent that the same arrangement of parts may equally well be applied to machines having a fixed paperholding part and a traveling carriage bearing the ribbon and typing parts, such as disclosed in United States Patent 2,742,132 to Anderson.

I claim:

1. In a typewriter or like printing machine having an inked ribbon having its end portions wound upon two spools, a ribbon-feeding device to move said ribbon from one of said spools to the other, sensing means cooperaing with said spools to determine when one of said spools is exhausted, reversing means responsive to said sensing means to reverse the direction of feed of said feeding device, a movable cover for said ribbon spools, and a ribbon carrier to move said ribbon to and from a printing point, the combination of means responsive to the opening of said cover to move said sensing means out of engagement with said spools, whereby the spools are freed for removal from the machine, and ribbon guide means mounted on the inner side of said cover and movable therewith to and from operative position.

2. A machine as recited in claim 1 wherein the means responsive to the opening of said cover comprises a rockable member having one end located in the path of said cover and the other end in operative engagement with said spool exhaustion sensing means.

3. A machine as recited in claim 2 wherein the rockable member is constantly urged to move said spool exhaustion sensing means out of engagement with said spools.

4. A machine as recited in claim 1 wherein the ribbon carrier is provided with guide slots which are partially open at their tops whereby the ribbon may be easily dropped into the slots from above.

5. A machine as recited in claim 1 wherein the guide means comprise members attached to the inner side of said cover and forming slots open at their bottoms to receive said ribbon and guide it in its path from spool to spool.

6. In a typewriting machine having an outer casing, an inked ribbon having its end portions wound upon two spools, a ribbon-feeding device to move said ribbon from one of said spools to the other, sensing means cooperating with said spools to determine when one of said spools is exhausted, and reversing means responsive to said sensing means to reverse the direction of feed of said feeding device, said casing including a cover movable to allow access to said ribbon spools, the combination of a ribbon carrier to move said ribbon to and from a printing point and having guide slots open from the top, and guide means mounted on the inner side of said cover to guide the ribbon in its path from the spools to the carrier and movable to an operative position when the cover is closed and to an inoperative position when the cover is open.

7. In a typewriter having an outer casing including a movable top cover portion, an inked ribbon having its end portions wound upon two spools, a ribbon-feeding device to move said ribbon from one of said spools to the other, sensing means cooperating with said spools to determine when one of said spools is exhausted and normally urged into operative engagement with said spools, and reversing means responsive to said sensing means to reverse the direction of feed of said feeding device, the combination of means controlled by said cover for holding said sensing means out of operative engagement with said spools when said cover is open and movable by the cover when the cover is closed to release said sensing means to operative engagement with said spools.

8. In a typewriting machine having an outer casing, an inked ribbon having its end portions wound upon two spools, a ribbon feeding device to move said ribbon from one of said spools to the other, sensing means cooperating with said spools to determine when one of said spools is exhausted, and reversing means responsive to said sensing means to reverse the direction of feed of said feeding device, said casing including a cover movable to allow access to said ribbon spools, the combination of a ribbon carrier to move said ribbon to and from a printing point and having guide slots open from the top, and guide means mounted on the inner side of said cover to guide the ribbon in its path from the spools to the carrier and movable to an operative position when the cover is closed and to an inoperative position when the cover is open, and means operative upon the opening of said cover to move said sensing means out of engagement with said spools.

9. In a typewriting machine, a ribbon having its end portions wound upon two spools, a ribbon feeding device to move said ribbon from one of said spools to the other, sensing means cooperating with each of said spools to determine when either of said spools is exhausted, and reversing means responsive to said sensing means to reverse the direction of feed of said feeding device, the combination of a ribbon carrier to move said ribbon to and from a printing point and having guide slots open from the top, and a common actuator operable to simultaneously move said sensing means out of engagement wth both of said spools.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 959,721 Young Feb. 15, 1910 1,444,071 Hokanson Feb. 6, 1923 2,126,315 Dobson Aug. 9, 1938 2,822,909 Roy Feb. 11, 1958 2,884,112 Lundeberg Apr. 28, 1959 

